Private equity, Mergers and Acquisitions, Mergers and Acquisitions, MSP

PE-Backed Novatech Acquires Xerox Dealer Digital Office Solutions

Novatech, backed by private equity firm Trivest Partners, has acquired Xerox dealer Digital Office Solutions of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

This is technology M&A deal number 522 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2021.

In this deal, the Digital Office Solutions team will tuck into Novatech to serve the Wisconsin market, the buyer indicated.

Novatech Acquires Digital Office Solutions: Executive Perspectives

Dan Cooper, CEO, Novatech
Dan Cooper, CEO, Novatech

In a prepared statement about the deal, Novatech CEO Dan Cooper said:

"Novatech continues to grow. Bob Webb has leveraged his 50+ years of industry experience at Xerox to build an incredible company and Xerox dealership in Wisconsin. Bob and his two co-founders Amy Arnold and Frank Caruso are truly second to none, and the company holds an exceptional reputation in the local market. We're excited to join forces to bring enhanced solutions and services to the Wisconsin business community."

Added Bob Webb, CEO of Digital Office Solutions:

"Over the past 19 years, Digital Office Solutions has maintained an unwavering focus and commitment to being a trusted technology resource for our local clients, providing exceptional customer experiences every time. The Novatech merger is putting DOS in an excellent position to take that customer commitment to the next level! I'm truly excited for this next chapter."

Novatech: Extensive Acquisition Experience

Novatech, founded in 1998 and based in Nashville, Tennessee, offers managed IT and print services. The company was originally known as NovaCopy and previously based in Memphis, Tennessee.

Novatech has extensive M&A experience in the office equipment dealer, copier and managed print services market. Earlier acquisitions include:

Meanwhile, Xerox Acquires Channel Partners

Meanwhile, Xerox has also been acquiring channel partners of its own as it seeks to directly serve SMB (small and midsize business) customers. Example Xerox acquisitions include Document Systems in June 2021, Groupe CT in May 2021, and Digitex in March 2020.

Those deals questions about potential channel conflict within Xerox’s partner network. In a previous statement, the company said it wanted to strengthen its U.S. SMB market reach through a combination of its own portfolio of workplace solutions and local technology providers.

Still, Xerox has pushed various IT services to SMB customers since at least February 2020. Those direct-to-customer Xerox services include hardware procurement, professional engineering, IT product support, managed IT services, information security management and vCIO services.

Roll it all together, and Xerox essentially is becoming an MSP to SMB customers.